"The first jar of wine is Daughter Red, brewed in the seventy-fifth year of Da Li, buried under the banyan tree for a century. The wine is mellow, its aroma lingering endlessly." Sharp laughter echoed across the harbor, its source originating from the ground above the crater. He saw an unremarkable earthen jar hovering in midair. Though merely the size of a head, it poured forth endless flesh and blood. The flow of flesh carried a grotesque aura, mingled with the scent of wine. From inside the jar came hysterical shrieks, faintly tinged with drunkenness. "Good wine! Daughter Red, Daughter Red, maiden’s bones as crimson as scarlet, buried under the banyan tree unknown to all, unknown to all Daughter Red!!!" Eyes grew on the surface of the jar, pupils spinning chaotically. More and more flesh surged forth, and the jar’s surface sprouted human features, its manic speech repeating incessantly. The flesh didn’t merely cover the crater’s opening; it wriggled like a living thing, encasing the Outer Heaven Meteorite Crater within layers of soil and rock. "The Three Pure Heavens made their move. The timing is exactly as anticipated." Li Mo could see that the Three Pure Heavens had begun to fear him, their invocation of this grotesque object clearly meant to test the harbor’s defenses. Fragmentary memories surged from the Creation Book due to the jar’s presence. "Wine Sword Immortal? How did he become this ghastly figure?" Li Mo stood atop an ancient tree, coldly observing the jar’s actions. According to feedback from the Creation Book, the jar once belonged to a cultivator from the Divine Separation Stage a thousand years ago, whose real name was Li Congding, mockingly called Wine Sword Immortal by mortals. Li Congding was often seen carrying a gourd-shaped magic treasure, capturing demons and dissolving their flesh to brew into wine. Upon close examination of the jar, its structure indeed resembled a liquor container. Yet it also bore human traits. "Was Wine Sword Immortal a member of the Three Pure Heavens?" "No, something feels off. Why does it seem like Wine Sword Immortal’s spiritual wisdom is deficient? Could it be the Three Pure Heavens still dismiss me? Impossible." Li Mo infused spiritual power into his throat and shouted, "Are you... Li Congding?!!" His voice penetrated the dense layers of rock. The jar trembled, hurriedly muttering to itself in a panicked tone, "I am not Li Congding. I don’t know Li Congding. Nothing to do with me, nothing to do with me..." The jar split with multiple fissures, appearing on the verge of collapse. The flesh surged more violently, but the jar’s aura gradually stabilized, and the cracks closed up, healing completely. "Wine Sword Immortal’s condition is complicated—human or ghost?" The jar resembled a magic treasure or a deceitful object but nothing like a cultivator. The beings of Ten Thousand Demon Dao, even with mutated bodies, always reveal traces of flesh and bone. The Wine Sword Immortal had entirely escaped ordinary comprehension. Li Mo remained inscrutable. He could ascertain only one thing: Wine Sword Immortal’s level of power matched Void Refining Stage, but whether he was in the Fake Void Realm or Offshore Realm remained uncertain. Li Mo wasn’t even sure whether Wine Sword Immortal still possessed an Externalized Dharma Body or if his innards were filled entirely with indescribable grotesque objects. "For now, let’s clarify Wine Sword Immortal’s reality and illusion." Li Mo furrowed his brows slightly. Initially, he thought the Three Pure Heavens would dispatch multiple Void Refining cultivators to quickly seize control of the Outer Heaven Meteorite Crater. Instead, they sent only Wine Sword Immortal. Though peculiar and unpredictable, it was impossible for him to quickly eliminate Li Mo. "What exactly are the Three Pure Heavens plotting?" Li Mo suppressed his stray thoughts, sensing that there was something he had overlooked. "Speaking of which, Wine Sword Immortal had been a Divine Separation Stage loose cultivator a thousand years ago. How did he fall to such a non-human, non-ghost form?" Li Mo reviewed the Creation Book’s memories and soon found some clues. Li Congding was deeply fond of wine, often mingling among mortals, leading to frequent rumors of the Wine Sword Immortal circulating in the streets. "No joy without wine, demon-slaying to uphold the Dao, a life addicted to spirits..." There was even a saying that Li Congding was the reincarnation of an immortal’s wine jug. Yet fame is perilous during cosmic upheaval. New ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄhapters are published on 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵·𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮·𝓷𝓮𝓽 As expected, Li Mo suspected the upheaval allowed Li Congding to achieve his wish, ultimately transforming into something unspeakably non-human. "Raise the cup, invite the drink, recall old friendships; stories of past acquaintances across decades of springs." "Daughter Red is uncorked! What truly fine wine—unheard of once in a millennium." Wine Sword Immortal poured forth the flesh and blood, then staggered drunkenly as if intoxicated, uttering some obscure verses. Li Mo noticed that the mountain of writhing flesh was indeed a grotesque object. Amid its movements, he could see countless white bones interspersed throughout. The flesh monster had reached the Void Refining Stage, which would qualify as Night Patrol Deity in the Heavenly Sword Sect. Fortunately, it lacked the fearsome taboos of Night Patrol Deities. The flesh monster seemed more like a man-made horror, not one birthed by nature. The flesh monster surrounded the Outer Heaven Meteorite Crater, beginning to grow its body further. Li Mo opened his mouth and spat. Hundreds of Lifebound Flying Swords shot forth, piercing into the rock wall to test the monster’s reality and illusion—to observe Wine Sword Immortal’s response. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. The Mother Furnace activated its array, and the flying swords surged toward the flesh monster. As soon as the Lifebound Flying Swords made contact with the flesh monster, their blade materials began to transform, becoming fleshy grotesque entities one after another. "Put them in the jar, quickly put them in the jar!" "Put them in the jar!!!" Wine Sword Immortal seemed startled awake, screeching sharply, greedily fixating on the flying swords as though they were delicious morsels. Li Mo instantly lost control of his Lifebound Flying Swords. They shot straight toward the jar. The edges of the jar sprouted countless sharp teeth, devouring hundreds of flying swords before eerie crunching noises filled the air. The Lifebound Flying Swords remained unharmed, merely trapped inside Wine Sword Immortal’s body, slowly being converted into grotesque entities. Before Li Mo could investigate further, the flesh monster began battering the Outer Heaven Meteorite Crater. The Corpse Mountain Blood Sea Array emitted sounds of intolerable pressure. Not yet at Void Refining Stage, it struggled to resist the flesh monster. "Troubled! Troubled!!!" Wine Sword Immortal screamed incessantly. The flesh monster hesitated briefly before spawning numerous smaller grotesque creatures that gnawed at the array’s weakened sections. The miniature grotesque beings took on a humanoid shape but were formed entirely of interconnected maggots. Their individual strength had already reached Nascent Soul Stage. The consumption inflicted on the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea Array multiplied a hundredfold. The maggot grotesques swarmed together. Despite the array using Spirit Root Worms as its Array Eye, it couldn’t completely fend off their suicidal onslaughts. "Since these are grotesque entities, fine—let Creation Sect disciples test the waters. Their use of the Immortal Creation Technique is still far from refined." The cultivators driving the Immortal Creation Technique showed signs of clumsiness; they needed a baptism of bloody combat. After hesitating for several moments, Li Mo loosened control over the array at the bottom of the Outer Heaven Meteor Crater. "Better to guide than block." A flood of grotesque entities streamed along the rock walls, surging toward the harbor—a scene beyond imagination for mortals. The harbor descended into chaos. Long years of stability had made the inhabitants forget the ongoing threats posed by the Outer Heaven Outer Crater. Li Mo remained exceptionally calm, knowing the grotesque entities were just the appetizers. "All disciples, hear my command." "Use the harbor’s lower levels as the defensive line to repel the grotesque entities." Nascent Soul Cultivators joined in to maintain order, and the harbor quickly regained composure, hordes of figures streaming into the streets of the lower levels. Among the artifact cultivators, ten had reached the Nascent Soul Stage, while the beast cultivators sent ten Nascent Soul individuals as well. Each led a cohort of a hundred Core Formation Cultivators stationed at the bottom levels, which were primarily centered around shops—all meticulously organized. The entrances and exits to the lower levels were sealed. Backstreets and alleys vibrated slightly, as dozens of shops shifted positions rapidly. Spirit Root Worms triggered Illusion Techniques, and a Void Realm aura enveloped the lower harbor. The grotesques entering the streets found themselves disoriented. Indeed, Li Mo drew inspiration from Tian Changwen of old, using shops as chess pieces to encircle the grotesques. The process unfolded smoother than expected. No matter how numerous the grotesques were, as long as they were scattered, the harbor’s cultivators could dispatch them swiftly. Bloodshed escalated intensely. Modified organs proliferated among the cultivators, with some discovering interlocking combinations yielding mutually reinforcing effects. When three organs harmonized, their power rivaled top-grade innate Taoist bodies, occasionally altering the cultivator’s physical appearance in subtle ways. Through battling the grotesques, the cultivators became increasingly adept at using their modified organs. Li Mo planned to rotate batches of cultivators stationed in the lower levels every two weeks. Even cultivators who had not yet reached Core Formation could assist in dealing with grotesques’ corpses. He closed his eyes to track his trapped Lifebound Flying Swords within the jar. Though Li Mo could no longer communicate with his Lifebound Flying Swords, it didn’t mean he was completely powerless. Each Lifebound Flying Sword contained traces of cancer cells, which, when exposed to the grotesque’s mutations, were instead stimulated into activity. Li Mo connected with Da Ai Mi Tian, deliberately guiding the direction of the mutations. The flood dragon’s flesh grew bloated, its stomach accumulating tangible Sword Qi until its body was pushed to the limit of endurance. Hundreds of Lifebound Flying Swords exploded, Sword Qi scattering wildly. Wine Sword Immortal’s manic laughter abruptly halted. The jar rolled uncontrollably, riddled with fine cracks instantaneously. The jar shattered under Li Mo’s astonished gaze, disintegrating into dust. "Not the real body. Damn, truly troublesome." Li Mo sneered coldly. Hundreds of Divine Separation Stage perfect Lifebound Flying Swords exploding together barely reached Void Refining Stage level at best. Against a Karma Seal Mother, it might barely pierce the skin. "I need to find Wine Sword Immortal’s true form. If he fully maps out the harbor, I might be safe, but the Creation Sect will inevitably suffer great losses." The grotesque entities didn’t cease birthing more horrors despite Wine Sword Immortal’s disappearance. Their wine aroma grew increasingly intense. "What an intriguing Wine Sword Immortal—the Three Pure Heavens really seem to favor oddities." Li Mo closed his eyes to nourish his spirit, leaving the battle entirely under Tian Changwen’s command. Except for the initial losses among the cultivators, once they adapted their tactics, they discovered these stupid grotesques were actually easy to deal with. The harbor didn’t come under siege; instead, the cultivators entered a lively frenzy. After all, a steady stream of spiritual material was being delivered to their shops. Li Mo didn’t rush to destroy the flesh monster. He waited for Wine Sword Immortal to make his move. Unclear how much time passed, Li Mo’s Buddha Demon Dharma Body steadily advanced, its daily consumption of vast resources paired with Corpse Mountain’s ongoing transformation. "It’s coming again. Let’s see who has the better patience." Among the clouds, a new wine bottle appeared, crafted from white porcelain.